WASHINGTON (TNND) — President Donald Trump on Thursday unveiled what the White House is calling the “Great Healthcare Plan,” a broad framework aimed at lowering health care costs as Congress continues to debate the future of Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies.
FILE – President Donald Trump speaks at his Mar-a-Lago club, Monday, Dec. 22, 2025, in Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
While the administration said the plan would deliver relief to Americans facing rising medical expenses, critics argue it lacks the specifics needed to reshape the system.
The plan focuses on several core goals:
The framework also proposes changing how federal health care assistance is delivered, sending payments directly to households to help cover medical costs rather than routing subsidies through insurance companies.
Calling it “the biggest thing to happen to healthcare maybe since the beginning,” Trump urged lawmakers to codify the framework into law, saying congressional action is needed to expand on steps his administration has already taken.
Those steps include policies such as “most favored nation” drug pricing, which ties the cost of certain medications in the U.S. to lower prices paid abroad. Administration officials argue that broader legislation would build on those efforts and reduce costs more quickly for patients.
The framework also notably rejects extending ACA subsidies, which have been a major point of contention on Capitol Hill.
Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Wisconsin, said the proposal comes too late and could leave millions without coverage.
“This guy has had ten years to come up with a health care plan,” Pocan said. “Instead, they cut health care for 15 million people, and they raised all of our rates in the process.”
The rollout of the plan comes as the White House promotes a separate $50 billion rural health initiative, which Trump highlighted at an event Friday. The funding was added to Trump’s signature legislative package, known as the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” after Republican lawmakers warned that planned Medicaid cuts could disproportionately harm rural hospitals.
Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, said the rural initiative gives states more flexibility to address local needs.
“This bill isn’t just about money,” Sullivan said. “It’s about letting states and governors design the system they need instead of a one-size-fits-all approach.”
The rural health fund has drawn more bipartisan interest than other administration proposals. Still, analysts note that the $50 billion investment is far smaller than the $911 billion in Medicaid spending the Congressional Budget Office estimates would be cut over the next decade under the broader bill.
As lawmakers weigh competing health care priorities, the future of the plan remains uncertain.
National Headline
